Refuse compactor

ABSTRACT

There is disclosed a refuse compactor having a rectilinear cabinet provided with a rectangular front opening therein. A door is pivotally mounted about a vertical axis on one side of the cabinet front. A refuse receiving container is mounted on the door for movement therewith during opening and closing of the door. The mechanism mounting the container on the door allows linear and rotational movement of the container through the cabinet opening and arcuate movement of the container after the container has cleared the cabinet opening during door opening movement. During door closing movement, the container moves arcuately with the door during an initial part of door closing movement and then moves linearly and rotationally into the cabinet.

United States Patent 1 June 10, 1975 Eckerle REFUSE COMPACTOR [75] lnventor: William A. Eckerle, Louisville, Ky.

[73] Assignee: General Electric Company,

Louisville, Ky.

[22] Filed: Apr. 26, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 464,530

[52] US. Cl. 100/229 A; 53/124 B; 100/255;

[51] Int. Cl. 1330b 1/18 [58] Field of Search 100/229 A, 255, 289; 53/124 13; 141/80; 312/274 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,435,232 11/1922 Hieber 100/255 UX 2,702,224 2/1955 Goldberg..... 312/274 3,353,478 11/1967 Hopkins 100/255 X 3,602,136 8/1971 Ligh 100/255 X 3,654,855 4/1972 Longo 1 i 100/229 3,714,890 2/1973 Moon 100/229 A 3,734,006 5/1973 Hennells 100/255 X 3,741,108 6/1973 Stratman et a1. 100/229 A FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 421,060 8/1946 1taly 100/255 Primary Examiner-Billy J, Wilhite [57] ABSTRACT There is disclosed a refuse compactor having a rectilinear cabinet provided with a rectangular front opening therein. A door is pivotally mounted about a verti cal axis on one side of the cabinet front. A refuse receiving container is mounted on the door for movement therewith during opening and closing of the door. The mechanism mounting the container on the door allows linear and rotational movement of the container through the cabinet opening and arcuate movement of the container after the container has cleared the cabinet opening during door opening movement. During door closing movement, the container moves arcuately with the door during an initial part of door closing movement and then moves linearly and rotationally into the cabinet.

10 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures REFUSE COMPACTOR BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Most refuse compactors presently on the market comprise a slidably mounted drawer which is linearly moved into and out of a compacting cabinet. The drawer typically comprises a rectangular container for receiving refuse which is compacted therein by a vertically moving platen. The rectangular containers presently employed in domestic compactors are relatively heavy and expensive since they must include a plurality of peripheral bracing members to withstand hoop stresses generated during compacting. It would be desirable to provide a generally cylindrical container since cylindrical structures inherently better withstand hoop stresses than rectangular structures. The provision of cylindrical containers for refuse compactors has been suggested in the prior art, as in US. Pat. Nos. 3,654,855 and 3,734,006.

A small envelope size is another desirable feature for domestic refuse compactors. Mounting the refuse container on a slidably mounted drawer provides efficient usage of space since the cabinet need only be marginally larger than the container. The provision of a slidably mounted drawer does, however, create some diffculties since suitable arrangements must be made to permit the container to bottom out on the cabinet floor during compacting so that compaction loads are not resisted by the mounting mechanism.

Providing access to the refuse container via a pivotally mounted, i.e., hinged, door is desirable because of the lower cost associated with such a design, as opposed to a drawer arrangement. However, mounting the refuse container on the hinged door in accordance with prior art teachings has the disadvantage that the cabinet and cabinet opening must be substantially larger than the refuse container. This is best seen by a comparison of container. cabinet and cabinet opening sizes in the compactors disclosed in US. Pat. Nos. 3,602,136; 3,654,855; 3,732,805; 3,734,006 and 3,73 l ,616.

It is desirable to provide a refuse compactor having a container mounted on a hinged compactor door for easy access to the container but in which the compactor cabinet and opening thereinto are not substantially larger than the container. This invention provides such a feature.

In summary, this invention comprises a compactor including a frame having a compacting chamber and an access opening thereinto; a door having an open top container supported therein; means mounting the door in a path including an arcuate segment toward and away from the opening, a closed door position, a partially open door position. and an open door position; means for linearly moving the container through the opening into and at least partially out of the chamber in response to door movement between the closed and partially open positions and for arcuately moving the container with the door in response to door movement between the partially open and open operative positions', and means operative when the container is in the chamber for compressing refuse therein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a top view of the compactor of this invention, certain parts being broken away for clarity of illustration, the dashed lines of FIG. 1 illustrating the psi tion of the compactor door and container when the door is in its intermediate position;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 illustrating door movement to the fully open position;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the compactor of this invention having certain parts broken away for clarity;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged partial view of the container and mounting therefor;

FIG. 5 is a partial cross sectional view of the container and mounting mechanism of FIG. 4 taken substantially along line 5-5 thereof as viewed in the direction indicated by the arrows; and

FIG. 6 is a top view of a clamp used with the compacting container illustrated.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to FIGS. 1-3, there is illustrated a compactor 10 comprising as major components a cabinet or frame 12, a door 14, a refuse container 16 and means 18 mounting the container 16 on the door 14. Compactor 10 is provided with a suitable compacting mecha nism 20 for compacting or compressing refuse in the container 16 and suitable controls (not shown) for energizing the compacting mechanism 20 in any suitable fashion.

The cabinet 12 is desirably of rectilinear configuration having a top wall 22, side walls 24, 26, a back wall 28 and a bottom wall or floor 30. The cabinet 12 accordingly provides an opening 32, which is preferably rectangular, providing access to a compacting chamber The door 14 comprises inner and outer spaced panels 36, 38 and upper and lower panels 40, 42 providing a door compartment 44 housing part of the mounting means 18 as will be more fully apparent hereinafter. The door 14 is mounted for pivotal movement about a vertical axis by a pair of upper and lower brackets 46 cooperating with receiving pins 48, extending through the upper and lower panels 40, 42. As will be apparent from a comparison of FIGS. 1 and 2, the door 14 is mounted for movement between a closed position, an intermediate partially open position, wherein the door 14 is generally aligned with the side wall 24, and a fully open position.

As shown best in FIGS. 3-5, the container 16 is preferably a one-piece polymeric resinous material molding substantially cylindrical in shape, although it may be tapered slightly in order to be removed from its mold. The container 16 provides an arcuate closed side wall 50, a bottom wall 52 and an open top 54. Suitable circumferential stiffening ribs 56 may be provided on the exterior of the side wall 50 to increase hoop strength. A bracket 58 integral with the side wall 50 conveniently extends circumferentially about the container 16 providing a groove 60 for receiving part of the mounting means 18 and thereby supporting the container l6.

Surrounding the open top 54 of the container 16 is clamp means 62 which provides a plurality of functions including: clamping a flexible wall bag 64 to the container 16; providing support for the container 16 against downward and twisting movement; providing increased hoop strength for the container 16 adjacent the open upper end thereof, and providing a grasping means for lifting the container 16 out of load supported relation with the mounting means 18.

To these ends, clamp means 62 comprises a ring member 66 of generally U-shaped cross section for receiving the open top 54 of the container 16. The ring member 66 is made of resilient material. for example metal, and provides an open gap 68 in the circumference thereof. A toggle device 70 spans the gap 68 and allows tightening of the clamp 62 onto the container 16 and allows loosening thereof when it is desired to re move the bag 64 from the container 16. The toggle device 70 may be of any suitable type and is illustrated as comprising an elongate handle 72 pivotally mounted onto the ring 66 on one side of the gap 68 and a link 74 pivotally interconnected between the handle 72 and the ring 66 on the other side of the gap 68. It will be apparent that rotation of the handle 72 in the direction shown by the arrow in FIG. 6 causes the gap 68 to close and thereby secure the clamp 62 onto the container 16.

The clamp 62 also comprises a bail 76 extending along approximately half of the circumference of the ring 66 and is pivotally secured thereto by a pair of dia metrically opposed pivot pins 78, 80. It will accordingly be seen that the bail 76 may be used to lift the container 16 off of the mounting means 18 when it is desired to dispose of the compacted refuse.

The clamp 62 also comprises a mounting member 82 for cooperation with the mounting means 18 to attach the upper end of the container 16 thereto. The mounting member 82 comprises an arcuate section 84 secured. as by welding or the like. to the circumference of the ring member 66 and a projection 86 which is received in a slot provided by the mounting means 18 as will be more fully apparent hereinafter. The arcuate section 84 also provides a pair of depending legs 88 (FIGS. 3 and 4) for receipt in the mounting means 18. As will be more fully appointed hereinafter, the projection 86 prevents twisting movement of the container 16 during compacting while the legs 88 prevent the con tainer 16 from tilting away from the mounting means 18 and assist in providing a vertical support for the container 16.

The mounting means 18 is best illustrated in FIGS. 4 and S and comprises a standard or column 90 mounted to the door 14 for pivotal movement about a vertical axis spaced from the axis of door movement by upper and lower pivot connections 92. The pivot connections 92 are preferably mirror images of each other for purposes more fully explained hereinafter. The standard 90 comprises upper and lower U-shaped brackets 94 extending into the door compartment 44. Each of the brackets 94 surrounds an upstanding pivot pin or stub shaft 96 and is secured thereto in any suitable fashion. as by a transverse pin or key 98. One end of each of the pins 96 is received in a cup 100 having a flange 102 thereon which is supported by a spring 104 from a leg 106 of a bracket 108 secured to the inner door panel 36 in any suitable manner, as by spot welds 110. It will accordingly be seen that the standard 90 is resiliently supported on the door 14 for vertical movement between a first position illustrated in FIGS. 4 and wherein the lower spring 104 is expanded and a second position in which the lower spring 104 is compressed as will be more fully pointed out hereinafter.

The standard 90 is biased toward the door pivot connection 48 as illustrated in FIG. 2 by a torsion spring 112. As shown best in FIGS. 4 and 5, the opposite ends 114 ofthe spring 112 are captivated by an ear 116 pro vided by the bracket 108. A central portion 118 of the spring engages the bracket 94 and acts to bias the standard toward the door pivot 48.

The standard 90 includes a central U-shaped channel 120 for receiving the projection 86 of the clamp 62 and a pair of planar wings 122 which provide slot means such as a pair of upwardly facing slots 12'! (FIG. 4) offset toward the container 16 to receive and support the legs 88 of the clamp 62. The wings 122 also provide a pair of oppositely facing similarly offset slots 126 for purposes more fully explained hereinafter. Secured to the standard 90 are upper and lower pairs of generally hook shaped brackets 128 for receiving and supporting the container bracket 58.

As best shown in FIG. 3, the container 16 is supported so that the bottom wall 52 thereof is spaced from the floor 30 of the compactor 10 during opening and closing movement of the door 14. It will accordingly be apparent that there is no frictional engagement between the container 16 and the floor 30 during movement of the container 16 into and out of the compacting chamber 34. To achieve this end, it will be apparent that the springs 104 must be of sufficient capacity to remain in the expanded position of FIGS. 4 and 5 while supporting the weight of the standard 90 and the container 16 when full of compressed refuse. It is highly desirable that the mounting means 18 allow movement of the container 16 downwardly into supported engagement with the compactor floor 30 during the compacting operation. To this end, the springs 104 are sized to be compressed during downward movement of the compacting mechanism 20 upon engagement thereof with refuse in the container 16.

Upon inspection, it will be seen that the mounting means 18 and door 14 comprise upper and lower halves which are functionally symmetrical. Accordingly, if one desires that the door 14 open to the right, as contrasted to the leftward opening illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the container 16 may be removed from the mounting means 18, the brackets 46 detached from the cabinet 12, the door 14 inverted, the brackets 46 reattached to the cabinet 12 at the right front corner thereof and the container 16 replaced in the mounting means 18. It will accordingly be seen that part of the upper pivot connection 92, which appears superfluous in the position of FIGS. 4 and 5 becomes operative when the door 14 is inverted to pivot in the opposite direction. if the upper and lower halves of the mounting means 18 were not made functionally symmetrical, some means would necessarily be provided to journal the upper pivot pin 96 and to allow downward movement thereof during compacting. As illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, these functions are provided by the cup 100 and the spring 104. Thus, the mounting means 18 of this invention provides an oppositely opening capability for the door 14 without requiring a substantial increase in the number of components needed to mount the container 16.

Referring to FIGS. l3, there is illustrated an abutment 130 for engaging the upper end of the container 16 during movement thereof in and out of the compacting chamber 34. As previously mentioned, the springs 112 bias the container 16 toward the pivot pins 48. Without the abutment 130, the container 16 engages the side wall 24 of the cabinet 12 and slides therealong during opening and closing movement of the door 14. Since the side wall 24 is a relatively large member supported only at the sides thereof. the member 24 tends to reverberate thereby tending to produce a distracting noise during opening and closing movement of the door 14. As shown best in FIG. 3, the abutment 130 is supported from the top wall 22 and the back wall 28 and substantially eliminates any noise created by rubbing of the container 16 against the cabinet 12. It will accordingly be seen that the abutment I30 prevents the container 16 from engaging and reverberating the cabinet side wall 24. To this end, the abutment 130 comprises a relatively large vertical plate or camming surface I32 secured along its side to pivotal shelf member 142 which in turn is attached to the back wall 28 by a hinge 34. A foldable wall 136 is connected between the top wall 22 and shelf member 142 adjacent the front thereof by hinge connections I38 and I39. Bumper I47 pivotal shelf I42 is engaged by pressure plate I46 in its up position to support shelf member 142 in its horizontal position. Upon initiation of the compaction cycle, shelf member 142 pivots downwardly to the extent allowed by foldable wall I36. Such pivotal movement actuates switch means (not shown) to prepare the drive motor circuitry for reversing the ram.

If it is desired to construct a compactor in which the door 14 opens only as illustrated in FIGS. I and 2, the abutment I30 need be positioned only adjacent the side wall 24 since the container 16 never runs along the side wall 26. If it is desired that the compactor be capable of accommodating door opening movement in either direction, it is apparent that the abutment 130 should be positioned adjacent both of the side walls 24, 26. To this end, a substantially identical plate 140 may be positioned adjacent the side wall 26 and interconnected with the plate I32 by a generally pivotal shelf member 142 (FIG. 3) comprising part of the abutment 130. The pivotal shelf member 142 conveniently provides a central opening 144 to allow passage of the press therethrough.

Referring to FIG. 1, it will be seen that the container 16 is biased by the abutment I30 away from the door pivot pins 48 against the bias of the spring 112 as the door 14 moves toward the closed position. As the door 14 is moved from the closed position toward the partially open position, the springs 112 are effective to pivot the container 16 toward the door pivot pins 48. Accordingly, the mounting means 18 acts to convert pivotal movement of the door I4 into substantially linear movement of the container 16 during movement between the positions illustrated in FIG. 1.

Continued opening movement of the door I4 toward the fully open position illustrated in FIG. 2 causes pivotal movement of the container 16 about the axis of the door pivot pins 48. In the position of FIG. 2, the receptacle 16 may be removed from the mounting means 18 by lifting on the bail 76.

In summary, movement of the door 14 away from the closed position in FIG. I allows the torsion spring 112 to expand at least until a diameter in the container I6 clears the access opening 32 as seen in FIG. I. Continued opening movement of the door 14 toward the posi tion illustrated in FIG. 3 effects simultaneous rotation of the door 14 and the container I6 about the axis of the door pivot pins 48. During closing movement of the door 14, the container I6 rotates about the axis of the pivot pins 48 until the clamp 62 engages the camming surface I32. Continued closing movement of the door l4 causes the camming surface I32 to force the con tainer I6 to rotate about the axis of the stub shafts 96 against the bias of the torsion spring 112 in a direction away from the pivot pins 48. The container thus is directed in a generally linear path into the compacting chamber 34.

It should be noted that the compacting mechanism 20, shown in FIG. 3, may be of suitable design and is illustrated as comprising a pressure plate 146 for contacting refuse in the container 16, a screw member 148 connected to the plate 146, a linkage mechanism 150 for maintaining the plate 146 in a substantially horizontal position and a drive mechanism 152 for translating the screw 148 up and down. The drive mechanism 152 is illustrated as comprising a gear wheel I54 drivably rotating an internally threaded member I56 for receiving the screw 148. The gear wheel 154 is mounted for rotation and driven by a toothed belt 158 meshing with a gear wheel 160 driven by a suitable motor I62. It will be apparent that energization of the motor 162 rotates the gear wheel 160 to drive the belt 158, thereby rotating the gear wheel 154 to reciprocate the screw member 148 through the threaded member I56. Accord ingly, the pressure plate 146 moves downwardly into the container 16 or moves upwardly out of the container 16 in response to the direction of rotation of the motor 162.

It will accordingly be seen that there is provided a compactor affording many advantages not present in the prior art.

What is claimed is:

1. A household refuse compactor comprising:

a frame defining a compacting chamber and an access opening thereinto',

a door pivotally mounted along one of its sides to said frame adjacent said access opening;

means for pivotally mounting an open top refuse container on the inner side of the said door at a point intermediate the door sides; and

biasing means for urging the container toward the mounted side of the door, whereby the container pivots about the door hinge as the door is moved between an extreme open position and an intermediate position, at which the container is aligned with the frame access opening, and thereafter pivots about the pivotal mounting means to move along an approximately linear path within the compactor frame as the door is moved between said intermediate position and a closed position.

2. The compactor of claim I wherein the container mounting means includes a standard supporting the container and means pivotally mounting the standard on the door for movement about a generally vertical axis spaced from the door axis.

3. The compactor of claim 2 wherein the said means pivotally mounting said standard comprises upper and lower arms integral with the said standard and extending through the inner side of the door to a point intermediate the door sides, a stub shaft vertically disposed intermediate the door sides in supporting relation with each of the upper and lower arms, and means mounting the stub shafts for rotation for downward movement upon compacting refuse in the container.

4. The compactor of claim 3 wherein said standard includes a U-shaped channel, a pair of planar wings extending from the legs of said channel and slot means in said planar wings; and said container mounting means further includes clamp means secured onto said container and cooperating with said U-shaped channel and slot means thereby removably mounting said container to said door.

5. The compactor of claim 3 wherein said frame includes a floor and said means pivotally mounting said said container supporting member includes a spring engaging one of the stub shafts and elevating the container above the frame floor, said spring being sized to be compressed, thereby allowing said container to move into supported relation with the floor upon compacting refuse in the container.

6. The compactor of claim 2 comprising means abutting said container when said door is in said intermediate position, thereby causing said container to react against said biasing means and move in a substantially linear path in response to door movement from the in termediate position toward the closed position.

7. The compactor of claim 6 wherein said frame includes first and second spaced sides bounding the compacting chamber; and said means abutting said container comprises means in the chamber adjacent to and spaced from said first side for engaging the container and directing the same in a substantially linear path.

8. The compactor of claim 7 wherein the access opening is of regular quadrilateral configuration and the container is. of generally cylindrical configuration.

9. The compactor of claim 8 wherein the horizontal dimension of the access opening is substantially the same as the maximum diameter of the container.

10. The compactor of claim 5 wherein the door axis is adjacent a first side of the frame and the door and the container mounting means are symmetrical about a horizontal midplane thereof whereby the door and container mounting means may be inverted for shifting the door axis from adjacent the first side of the frame to adjacent a second side thereof. 

1. A household refuse compactor comprising: a frame defining a compacting chamber and an access opening thereinto; a door pivotAlly mounted along one of its sides to said frame adjacent said access opening; means for pivotally mounting an open top refuse container on the inner side of the said door at a point intermediate the door sides; and biasing means for urging the container toward the mounted side of the door, whereby the container pivots about the door hinge as the door is moved between an extreme open position and an intermediate position, at which the container is aligned with the frame access opening, and thereafter pivots about the pivotal mounting means to move along an approximately linear path within the compactor frame as the door is moved between said intermediate position and a closed position.
 2. The compactor of claim 1 wherein the container mounting means includes a standard supporting the container and means pivotally mounting the standard on the door for movement about a generally vertical axis spaced from the door axis.
 3. The compactor of claim 2 wherein the said means pivotally mounting said standard comprises upper and lower arms integral with the said standard and extending through the inner side of the door to a point intermediate the door sides, a stub shaft vertically disposed intermediate the door sides in supporting relation with each of the upper and lower arms, and means mounting the stub shafts for rotation for downward movement upon compacting refuse in the container.
 4. The compactor of claim 3 wherein said standard includes a U-shaped channel, a pair of planar wings extending from the legs of said channel and slot means in said planar wings; and said container mounting means further includes clamp means secured onto said container and cooperating with said U-shaped channel and slot means thereby removably mounting said container to said door.
 5. The compactor of claim 3 wherein said frame includes a floor and said means pivotally mounting said said container supporting member includes a spring engaging one of the stub shafts and elevating the container above the frame floor, said spring being sized to be compressed, thereby allowing said container to move into supported relation with the floor upon compacting refuse in the container.
 6. The compactor of claim 2 comprising means abutting said container when said door is in said intermediate position, thereby causing said container to react against said biasing means and move in a substantially linear path in response to door movement from the intermediate position toward the closed position.
 7. The compactor of claim 6 wherein said frame includes first and second spaced sides bounding the compacting chamber; and said means abutting said container comprises means in the chamber adjacent to and spaced from said first side for engaging the container and directing the same in a substantially linear path.
 8. The compactor of claim 7 wherein the access opening is of regular quadrilateral configuration and the container is of generally cylindrical configuration.
 9. The compactor of claim 8 wherein the horizontal dimension of the access opening is substantially the same as the maximum diameter of the container.
 10. The compactor of claim 5 wherein the door axis is adjacent a first side of the frame and the door and the container mounting means are symmetrical about a horizontal midplane thereof whereby the door and container mounting means may be inverted for shifting the door axis from adjacent the first side of the frame to adjacent a second side thereof. 